These Thousand Hills

These Thousand Hills is a 1959 American Western film directed by Richard Fleischer and starring Don Murray, Richard Egan, Lee Remick, Stuart Whitman and Patricia Owens. The screenplay was written by Alfred Hayes. It is based on the novel of the same name by A. B. Guthrie Jr. Filming took place in Sierra de Órganos National Park in the town of Sombrerete, Mexico. The plot involves a sheltered rancher brought up under the stern gaze of his Bible-thumping father. Plot Albert Gallatin "Lat" Evans (Don Murray), an earnest young cowboy determined to better his situation, wins a job with a cattle drive by busting a wild horse. Befriended by cowhand Tom Ping (Stuart Whitman), Lat fantasizes about owning his own ranch and being rich one day, unlike his father, who died "broke, a failure." When the drive reaches a small Wyoming town, the cowboys congregate at the saloon, where Jehu (Richard Egan), an unscrupulous rancher, proposes racing one of their horses against his swift steed. Lat accepts the challenge, and is in the lead when his opponent throws a blanket at his face, causing Lat to lose his balance and fall from his horse. Marshal Conrad (Albert Dekker), the town's upstanding banker, intervenes, however, and declares Lat the winner.